Field Of Product Design Research Articles

A Product’s Kansei Appearance Design Method Based on Conditional-Controlled AI Image Generation

Accurately grasping users’ Kansei needs and rapidly transforming them into product design solutions are key factors in enhancing product competitiveness and sustainability. This paper proposes a product appearance design method based on Kansei engineering and AI image generation technology, integrating other approaches, with household indoor hydroponics as the research subject. First, the web crawler is used to obtain product image samples and user online reviews, and factor analysis (FA) is applied to quickly extract users’ Kansei needs. Second, product morphology is used to deconstruct and encode product appearances. Partial least squares regression (PLSR) is then employed to map and quantify the relationships between Kansei needs and design elements, yielding optimal design solutions and one-dimensional sketches. These sketches are subsequently used as controlled conditions in Stable Diffusion (SD), combined with a team-trained Lora model, to generate two-dimensional colored sketches in batches. Finally, evaluations verify that the generated design solutions are satisfactory and meet users’ Kansei needs. The results indicate that the proposed product appearance design method not only holds significant implications for the sustainable development of Kansei engineering in product design but also greatly enhances the efficiency of the design process, providing new insights into integrating new technologies and scientific research methods in the field of product design.

CiteSpace에 기반한 중국 대운하 문화상품 디자인 특성 및 트렌드 분석 연구

This study will analyze the current state and trends in the field of the China Grand Canal cultural product design. By screening relevant literature from the CNKI database between 2014 and 2024, the study employs CiteSpace software to conduct bibliometric analysis and construct knowledge maps. The aim of this research is to uncover the key issues and emerging trends in the field of Grand Canal cultural product design, and to explore possible directions for its future development. Through co-occurrence analysis of keywords, analysis of author collaboration, and distribution of institutions, the study delves into the research dynamics and collaboration networks in this field. The findings suggest that although research on Grand Canal cultural product design has gradually increased since 2014, it remains largely exploratory, with relatively dispersed collaboration among researchers. Future development is likely to focus on interdisciplinary integration and the combination of regional cultural creativity to promote sustained progress in this field.

When and how it is good for fashion to look typical: visual prototypicality affecting product valuation and brand preference

PurposeAlthough visual prototypicality in fashion is an observed phenomenon, empirical examinations of the link between fashion products' design prototypicality and consumer evaluations still need to be included. The present study analyzes the influence of the visual prototypicality of fashion products on consumer-perceived product values and brand preference.Design/methodology/approachAn online survey adopting the fashion product images with significantly differing levels of visual prototypicality was used to collect data from 456 US consumers. The hypothesized relationships among visual prototypicality, product values and brand preference were analyzed through multi-group analysis.FindingsPerceived visual typicality of fashion product designs significantly increased the hedonic and utilitarian value of the product and only indirectly increase brand preference. The hypothesized positive relationship between visual prototypicality and the product’s social value was found to be significant only in the low-price levels but became insignificant in the high-price levels.Originality/valueThe findings of this study contribute to the extant literature by first providing an initial analysis of the mechanism of visual prototypicality in the fashion product design field. The results confirm that visual prototypicality indirectly influences consumers' brand evaluations by the product’s perceived value. This relationship was previously assumed but not empirically proven only in non-fashion product categories. The study also presents additional new points, further enriching the understanding of visual typicality. Additionally, the results show the complex relationship between the visual prototypicality of fashion product designs and the perceived social value of the product, which varies depending on the price range.

Systematic Review of Kansei Engineering Method Developments in the Design Field

Kansei engineering is a critical method for designing products that meet functionality, usability, and pleasurability, essential elements for business success. Despite its significance, there is limited understanding of how this method has evolved in recent years. This study aims to analyze the development of Kansei Engineering research from 2018 to 2022 using the Scopus database. The research methodology involved stages of identification, screening, filtering, and inclusion, resulting in 41 articles for detailed analysis out of an initial 215. The results indicate that 85% of Kansei Engineering research focuses on tangible products, with 83% categorized as type 1 studies, and 56% not integrating other methods. Additionally, 88% of the studies use only Kansei words, and 41% visualize design results as 3D images, with 95% not considering unique aspects. is dominance of tangible product design and the lack of integration with other methods suggest a need for diversification in research approaches. Furthermore, the high reliance on Kansei words and 3D visualizations points to a potential area for innovation and expansion in research techniques. This review highlights a significant research gap in Kansei Engineering studies, emphasizing the need for more diversified approaches. By identifying these gaps, the study provides a clear direction for future research, recommending that Kansei Engineering should explore beyond the predominant trends and consider integrating with other methods and unique aspects. This can enhance the method's application in industrial engineering and lead to more comprehensive and innovative product designs. Future research should aim to fill these gaps, ensuring that Kansei Engineering continues to evolve and contribute effectively to the field of product design and development.

제품디자인에서 생성형 인공지능 활용을 통한 협업프로세스 활용 가능성 탐색

With the rapid advancement of generative AI, most industries are entering a new phase. Generative AI is being utilized across a wide range of fields, including design. Consequently, this study explored the application of AI in the product design field and integrated it into the design process. The goal was to identify the differences between traditional product design processes and those enhanced by AI. Through this research, the potential of AI in product design was confirmed, and future methods of its application were investigated. First, the study considered the domains of human and AI design separately. AI's role was seen as generating and displaying various images, while humans decided on keywords and concrete designs. Next, experimental results indicated that at crucial moments in the design process, the designer’s ability and judgment in selecting designs remained important. Additionally, the effective use of prompts through questions became crucial in applying generative AI. Language, as the culmination of human knowledge and the most fundamental means of expression, plays a critical role. Ultimately, the effectiveness and efficiency of AI usage will depend on the user's level of knowledge in the respective field or their ability to extract knowledge from AI learning. As AI technology advances, paradigms across all industries are shifting. This phenomenon will merge with traditional design methods, resulting in an evolved form of design approach.

The Design of Souvenir Products Presented Through Augmented Reality for the King Naresuan Exhibition and Convention Center

The purposes of this research were 1) to study and analyze souvenir products for the King Naresuan Exhibition and Convention Center, 2) to design those souvenir products presented through augmented reality (AR) technology, and 3) to assess consumer satisfaction with the design of those souvenir products presented through AR technology. The study was conducted in two phases. In Phase 1, the researchers collected preliminary data by reviewing documents, theories, and research related to the design of souvenir product identities and visiting museums in Phitsanulok and Bangkok to create a questionnaire for use in assessing the needs identified by the research sample group. The data that were obtained were used for designing and creating the sketches of souvenir products, including the designed cartoon characters (a total of 40 patterns). These sketches were assessed using an assessment form and chosen by the experts in the field of souvenir product design. The chosen sketches were then used as prototypes for actual production in the next phase. In Phase 2, the five selected cartoon characters were used to produce the prototypes of souvenir products that could be presented through AR technology. The user could use his/her smart devices (e.g., a phone or a tablet) that had the NUsouvenirs application installed, to scan the souvenir products. The story and history of the King Naresuan Exhibition and Convention Center were presented. The souvenir products’ design as presented through AR technology was then assessed by the experts in the field of AR design and by the research sample group. The results showed that the design of the products, and the satisfaction with this AR experience and this AR application, were suitable for use in terms of uniqueness, design, usability, and suitability for being sold in stores. The AR technology was shown to be effective in promoting visitor involvement by purchasing souvenir products and gaining AR experience. Suggestions gained from the study and suggestions for further research are also discussed.

Developing a circular design framework: Co‐creation and validation of a circular product and service design tool

AbstractSustainable products are at the core of the circular economy, which is gaining momentum in scientific, economic, and policy fields. However, existing research in the field of circular product design remains fragmented. The literature has generally tended to focus on material or resource efficiency, while other complex issues related to product ecosystem also exist, such as the needs of the ecosystem (non‐human) and human user, circular challenge, and circular business model. By using a co‐creation approach, this study aims to create and validate a circular product design framework (CD‐Framework) and a self‐assessment tool for circular product design (CD‐Tool) that facilitates an understanding of how product circularity can be improved from the product ideation. The proposed CD‐Framework consists of 10 interconnected categories: circular challenge; circular business model; production; digital fabrication technologies; materials; branding and communication for circularity; packaging, distribution and logistics; user; usage; and after usage. The CD‐Tool was designed as a tool to aid product developers from various industry sectors in the self‐assessment of the circularity of product design. We contribute to developing tools that accelerate integration of circularity into product design through product‐level and ecosystem‐level considerations.

Applying Kano’s two-factor theory to prioritize learning analytics dashboard features for learning technology designers

Existing methods for software requirements elicitation, five-point Likert scales and voting methods for requirements prioritization, and usability and user experience evaluation methods do not enable prioritizing the learning analytics dashboard requirements. Inspired by management and product design field, this research applies Kano’s two-factor theory to prioritize the features of learning analytics dashboards (LADs) of adaptive learning platform (ALP) called Rhapsode<sup>TM</sup> learner, based on students’ perceived usefulness to support designers’ decision-making. Comparing usability and user experience methods for evaluating LAD features, this paper contributes with the protocol and a case applying Kano method for evaluating the perceived importance of the dashboards in ALP. The paper applies Kano’s two-factor questionnaire on the 13 LADs features of Rhapsode<sup>TM</sup> learner. Responses from 17 students are collected using a questionnaire, which is used to showcase the strength of the two-factor theory through five tabular and graphical techniques. Through these five tabular and graphical techniques, we demonstrate the application and usefulness of the method as designers and management are often carried away by the possibilities of insights instead of actual usefulness. The results revealed a variation in the categorization of LADs depending on the technique employed. As the complexity of the techniques increases, additional factors that indicate data uncertainty are gradually incorporated, clearly highlighting the growing requirement for data. In the case of RhapsodeTM learner platform, results based on the students responses show that 11 of 13 LADs being excluded due to low significance level in categorization (technique 1) and low response rate.

THE APPLICATION OF ZHUANGZI’S “NATURE AND INACTION” AESTHETIC THOUGHT IN CONTEMPORARY ART DESIGN: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

Background: At present, Zhuangzi’s aesthetic thoughts are applied in different fields and are widely used. There are also endless studies on Zhuangzi’s “nature and inaction” aesthetic thought in the world. Zhuangzi’s “nature and inaction” aesthetic thought has important guiding significance for relieving contemporary people’s psychological pressure and promoting people’s healthy mental development. Therefore, it is imperative to conduct more in-depth research on Zhuangzi’s “nature and inaction” aesthetic thought. Objective: This study aims to conduct a comprehensive review and analysis of existing literature related to the study of the application of Zhuangzi’s “nature and inaction” aesthetic thought in art design, to provide new research directions for future relevant researchers. Participants and setting: Screen and organize relevant literature collected in CNKI and Scopus databases during the 10 years from 2013 to 2023. Methods: The literature review adopted a “systematic review” to systematically organize the literature in the past 10 years. Results: This review combed through the research literature and found that most of the research focused on the application of Zhuangzi’s “nature and inaction” aesthetic thought in the fields of product design, graphic design and architectural design, and there was a lack of research on the aesthetic significance generated by these applications. Conclusions: An in-depth understanding of how Zhuangzi’s aesthetic thoughts are applied in different fields of art design and the resulting aesthetic significance can provide designers with new ways of thinking, while also providing valuable reference materials for future researchers and laying a theoretical foundation.

Designing Trust in Human-Cobot Interactions: An Exploration through Experience Mapping

This paper explores the dynamics between humans and collaborative robots (cobots), focusing on the crucial element of trust. Despite robots’ limitations in reflection and adaptability compared to humans, trust plays a pivotal role in determining the success of such collaborations. By employing principles of storytelling and role-play, trust mechanisms were designed in a contextual interaction between a human and a cobot to deeply understand the human perspective in the interaction on a cognitive and affective level. A qualitative workshop involving students from engineering and product design fields provides insights into human thoughts and emotions during human-robot collaborations (HRC). The outcome of this paper is a novel HRC experience map as a method for revealing the intricacies of trust dynamics, whilst serving as a foundational exploration in advancing interaction-based manufacturing processes towards human-centricity, efficiency, and effectiveness.

Eksploatacija TRIZ efekta na veštine razmišljanja studenata inženjeringa u dizajnu proizvoda

Product design is a creative and multidisciplinary activity that often necessitates the application of analytical and innovative support tools to enhance the concept research phase and solutions development. The TRIZ theory, a highly effective innovation method, has demonstrated its efficacy in supporting innovation across various fields. In this context, our focus has been on integrating TRIZ into the product design process involving engineering designers. This article provides a descriptive and critically assessed evaluation of the operational impact of TRIZ on the design activity, specifically in the development of a "Wastewater Screening and Filtration System" during the preliminary design phases. The objective of this research is to assess the influence of TRIZ utilization on the engineering designers' ability to address a design problem. The ultimate goal is to establish an innovative design support approach based on the use of TRIZ tools that is easily comprehensible and applicable to future designers. Within this article, we present both quantitative and qualitative results of the exploitation of TRIZ tools combined with an energy analysis of the requirement in the product design field.

A survey of LLM-augmented knowledge graph construction and application in complex product design

In the field of complex product design, deploying knowledge graphs (KGs) has become a promising trend due to its strength on exploiting and applying the large-scale, complex, and specialized domain knowledge. In recent years, large language models (LLMs) have also attracted much attention due to their outstanding performance in natural language understanding and generation. However, in the research of complex product design dominated by domain knowledge, few studies involve LLMS and KG at the same time. To fill this gap, we survey 42 articles published in the last four years, focusing on three key questions. The combination of LLM and KG in specific applications in complex product design is deeply discussed. The analysis reveals how these techniques facilitate data collection, design concept formation and design process optimization and proposes a technical framework combining LLM and KG for complex product design domain. In addition, we identify key challenges and propose directions for future research. As an explorative survey paper, this paper provides insightful ideas for implementing more specialized domain knowledge graph in complex product design field.

Deliberate Decisions in Product Design: An Approach Inspired by Life Cycle Assessment Techniques

In the wide field of product design, challenges often not just lie in making decisions but in determining what decisions truly merit attention and consideration. This paper explores an approach that makes techniques used in Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) instrumental in assessing and collating decisions and the significance of deciding. Where well-established LCA methodologies are recognised for evaluating environmental impacts, it is postulated that their underlying techniques can be employed to actively support and enrich decision-making in earlier stages of product design and development processes.This paper proposes an approach that uses LCA techniques to disentangle the cohesion and relations between the myriad decisions in design and development processes, thus aiming to identify the predominant, influential, sensitive, precarious, and consequential decisions. With that, the approach aims to support and enrich decisions making, not (just) by aiming for the best decision outcome, but foremost by addressing the most impactful decisions. The aim is to allow designers to navigate decisions and deliberations of decision processes within the context of the overall design process, while correlating the exactitude of a decision outcome to the impact and sensitivity that decisions have in the evolvement of the development trajectory.

Design Function Matrix (DFM) to identify modules for product architectures at the conceptual design phase

The Design Function Matrix (DFM) offers a comprehensive approach to modular design in product development. It integrates a structured methodology for analyzing and identifying modular components during the early stages of design, highlighting the importance of modularity for efficiency and lifecycle cost reduction. The DFM framework focuses on functional analysis, particularly the interactions of Material, Energy, and Signal flows. By mapping these flow interactions within a matrix structure, the DFM provides a clear visualization of the system’s architecture, enabling designers to easily identify potential modules. The research further delves into the quantification of these interactions, which plays a crucial role in the modularization process. This aspect of the study is exemplified through various case studies, demonstrating the practical application and effectiveness of the DFM in real-world scenarios. The matrix’s classification system is particularly noteworthy for its ability to systematically map all possible flow interactions, thus facilitating a more streamlined and efficient design process. Overall, the DFM stands out as a significant contribution to the field of product design, particularly in its potential to revolutionize the way modular components are identified and integrated during the conceptual design phase.

Research on Symbolic Design of Creative Products based on KJ Method

Semiotics, as a meta-science, is combined with other disciplines to form disciplinary research fields with different characteristics, such as product semiotics, cultural semiotics and social semiotics. The development of semiotics is extended to explore, and the mutual influence and common development of modern social semiotics and product design is explored in combination with the field of product design. Promote the birth and development of design disciplines and schools such as product semantics and unconscious design. This topic starts from the discussion of the birth and development of semiotics, takes product semiotics as the main research object, explores the related concepts of semiotics design and the influence of product symbols on users' behavioral concepts, and combines with KJ analysis to sort out and summarize the design elements of symbolized products, looking for the application solutions of symbolized products. Finally, from the perspective of symbolic development of future product design, methods and strategies are proposed: with the help of new technologies in the Internet era, get rid of the bondage of appearance service modeling; Pay attention to users' personalized and personal needs; Integrate the creative points.

A study to depict challenges and opportunities building industry professionals face when designing inclusive and accessible buildings

Inclusive Design has been widely promoted in the fields of product, engineering, and user experience design. Despite the educational efforts made by scientists, practitioners, and institutions to raise awareness about accessibility and inclusion, Inclusive Design has not been widely embraced in architectural design practice, where it is often associated with design for disability. This multidisciplinary study, spanning behavioural science, ergonomics, and the social sciences of architecture, explores the challenges architectural design practitioners face when designing inclusively, and identifies opportunities to promote the adoption of Inclusive Design. The results of a questionnaire completed by 114 architectural design practitioners underscore the lack of client awareness of the benefits of inclusive design, highlight the important role practitioners can play in advocating for Inclusive Design, and emphasize the need to develop practices and tools that enhance the design and post-design phases of buildings to ensure inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility.

A Study of 3D model voxelization method for artificial intelligence learning

<p class="abstract">The 3D reconstruction technology which is one of various restoration technologies, implements and shapes 2D pixels of an object that actually exists in a 3D form. As an accurate 3D model for artificial intelligence learning information pre-processing is required. The pre-processing needs to accurately size information and coordinate information of a 3D object for artificial intelligence learning. Also, the 3D model data generated during the preprocessing can be represented as a point cloud, which is point-based coordinate data. In this study, the pixel data was analyzed by voxelizing the 3D model for artificial intelligence learning, and the 3D model data was digitized to form a mesh file. In this study, 3D modeling was done with a 3D modeling tool and the object was exported to STL. In addition, it was converted into mesh file data including 3D coordinate data in Python language on Google’s colab platform. The mesh data created in this way is used in DataSet for artificial intelligence learning (CNN, RNN, GAN). Currently, there are many datasets for 2D artificial intelligence learning, but this study provided an opportunity to collect 3D artificial intelligence learning datasets. The research results can be used in the fields of robots, autonomous driving, games, and product design.</p>

Supersystem digital twin-driven framework for new product conceptual design

Digital twin (DT) is a technology that creates a digital replica of its physical entity with full information including historical and real-time data. They are expected to become an essential tool in industry 4.0 due to their ability to collect massive amounts of real-world data which can be utilized by artificial inelegance technologies for various purposes. The application of DT concepts in product design field has drawn wide interest, and DT has recently been proposed as a tool for supporting early-stage product design. Based on the difference in physical entities, DTs are classified as similar-product DT and mock-up prototype DT in this paper. Since there is often no product or physical prototype in early design stages, these two types of DTs for product design are primarily for re-design cases where data is collected from the DT of the similar products or prototypes. Introducing DTs to a new product design scenario is rarely explored. To fill the gap, this paper proposes the third type of DT, Supersystem DT that collects data from a product’s supersystem (i.e., the working/operation environment). A systematic framework that integrates the Supersystem DT and Theory of Inventive Problem Solving (i.e., TRIZ) tools are presented for early design activities including task clarification and conceptual design. A case study of designing a new camper box of an expedition vehicle is presented to show the process and effectiveness of the proposed framework. Finally, guidelines for selecting the three types of DTs in different design scenarios are discussed.

Predicament Faced by Regionalism Product Design Based on Chinese Cultural Context

This article introduces how regionalism has emerged in the context of economic globalization, and how this trend has spread to the field of product design. And based on the Chinese market, a case study was conducted on regionalized design, discussing how they behave in terms of regionalism and why they receive different evaluations from society. In the end, the article discusses the main challenges faced by the localization of regionalist design in China, what are they, and how they are formed.

Visual Transformation of Textile Intangible Cultural Heritage Patterns in the Design of Cultural and Creative Products

Based on the market status of the application of textile intangible cultural heritage in cultural and creative products, this paper analyzes the innovative design of contemporary textile intangible cultural heritage. This paper discusses the innovative design concept of textile intangible cultural heritage and creative products, analyzes the visual transformation principles of textile intangible cultural heritage in the design of cultural and creative products, and explores new ideas for intangible cultural heritage and creative design from three aspects: cultural, innovative and functional, in order to benefit the research field of textile intangible cultural heritage and creative product design in China.